Tucker (The Family Simon 1)

Abby’s eyes slid away, and then she shrugged. “We’re not dating anymore.”

Surprised, Tucker had no words. Since when?

He watched her slip past the new bartender until she disappeared from view—then he caught sight of Mick staring at him with a look that wasn’t exactly brotherly love.

He tossed a ten dollar bill onto the bar.

Shit. What the hell had he just done?

Chapter Two

You can do this.

You can do this.

You can do this.

The mantra echoed in her head as Abby Mathews splashed cold water on her face and took a moment. What the hell was she doing?

She stared down at the worn, porcelain sink, at the dark grey spidery cracks and blue toothpaste stuck to the drain, and thought she was going to heave.

Who was she kidding? On what planet could she do this? She must have been crazy to even suggest it.

A loud knock at the door brought her head up, and as much as she tried to avoid the sight of her big, scared eyes, she couldn’t help herself.

They stopped her cold.

Oh God. Tucker was going to know as soon as he saw her.

Jesus.

He was going to know everything.

“Abby?” Her roommate, Lisa, knocked again, but this time a little louder. “Abby? Are you all right?”

No .

“I’m good.” She grimaced. Dammit, she sounded worse than the night she’d come home high on drugs after getting her wisdom teeth pulled.

Lisa jiggled the doorknob, and Abby let her in.

“Crap,” Lisa murmured, wedging her way into the small space so that she could close the door behind her.

Crap was pretty much an understatement.

“Okay,” Lisa said slowly, eyes moving from the top of Abby’s head all the way to her booted toes. “Good news is that you look great. No, more than great. You look hot! Honestly, Abigail, the red silk top makes your boobs look, well, like you have boobs, and it’s a classy touch paired with your jeans.” Lisa squealed. “And those Mendel boots are killer.”

“They should be considering I spent my entire paycheck on them.” Abby paused. “Bad news?”

Lisa inhaled a big gulp of air. “The bad news is that he’s here,” she said in a rush, her blue eyes wide as she tucked a long piece of Abby’s hair behind her ear. “Are you sure you should be doing this?”

Abby saw the concern in her roommate’s eyes and offered up a small smile.

“No way in hell should I be doing this.” She gulped in air. “But I can’t cancel now.”

“Sure you can,” Lisa said, her blond hair shining as she twirled a piece between her fingers. “Just tell him that you’ve got the flu.”

Abby frowned.